I noticed that certain shows in my to do list are 720p while others are 1080i. Now I record everything I possibly can in HD (as long as the network provides it of course) but I am confused as to why some of the recordings are 720 and others are 1080i. Is it a setting I need to configure on the TiVo box or does that have to do with the network specifically?

*example- anything I record on CBSHD comes 1080i but anything on ABCHD comes 720p?

which is why ESPN also uses 720p,I personally would like to see everythink go to 1080p, but heck there are already making plans for ultra high definition 4k or 8k which would be up to 16 times more clear than what we have now with 1080i, of course this is still 5 to 10 years from now! god how i wish i was 8 years old right now instead of 58 i can only imagine what television will be like in the future!! I hope i'm still around to enjoy some of the goodness thats coming.

which is why ESPN also uses 720p,I personally would like to see everythink go to 1080p, but heck there are already making plans for ultra high definition 4k or 8k which would be up to 16 times more clear than what we have now with 1080i, of course this is still 5 to 10 years from now! god how i wish i was 8 years old right now instead of 58 i can only imagine what television will be like in the future!! I hope i'm still around to enjoy some of the goodness thats coming.

The reason it's 720p and 1080i is bandwidth - 720p and 1080i actually consume very similar amounts of bandwidth, which is why they're both in the spec. 1080p would require twice as much bandwidth. And cable companies are cheaping out by squeezing 3 or more HD channels where 1 analog channel went, causing all sorts of compression artifacts. And the more channels they dedicate to TV, the less they have for internet, meaning people who cut the cord get to experience bandwidth caps and other stuff.

But considering most reception devices out there cannot handle MPEG4(I mean H.264 ), it's not going to change anytime soon.

OTA isn't going to change from MPEG-2 for a long time, but cable companies are going to start switching to H.264 soon. In fact I think a few have already started offering a few channels in H.264.

Once the transition is complete I expect that the first "channel" to offer full 1080p will be PPV/VOD. Cable companies need to do that so they can keep up with services like Netflix and VUDU. Eventually the premium cable channels like HBO and Sho, and maybe a few sports channels, will follow suit. Beyond that I wouldn't expect many more to offer 1080p, as it's mostly unnecessary beyond sports and movies, but I would expect that more of the standard cable channels will get upgraded to HD (720p or 1080i) to take advantage of the extra bandwidth.

OTA isn't going to change from MPEG-2 for a long time, but cable companies are going to start switching to H.264 soon. In fact I think a few have already started offering a few channels in H.264.

The "plus" package from Cox is H.264 channels. Only their new Whole Home DVR and CC devices like TiVo can receive them. With this package I am able to receive all of the premium channels in HD, just not a subset of the SD versions.